New feature transforms ChatGPT into a collaborative space, allowing up to 20 participants to co-create, plan, and problem-solve together
ChatGPT Is No Longer a Solo Experience
OpenAI has rolled out group chats in ChatGPT globally, expanding its AI assistant from a personal tool into a collaborative workspace. Starting today, users on Free, Go, Plus, and Pro plans can now host and join shared conversations with up to 20 participants, combining human discussion with AI-powered insights.
- Previously tested in Japan and New Zealand, the group chat feature is now live worldwide.
- Users can bring in friends, family, or co-workers to plan trips, write documents, compare options, or explore research together—with ChatGPT available as a collaborative assistant.
How Group Chats Work
Launching a group chat in ChatGPT is simple and built for real-time collaboration:
- 🧑🤝🧑 Tap the people icon to start a group or generate a shareable invite link.
- 📝 All participants create a short profile with name, username, and photo.
- 📁 Adding someone to an existing chat creates a new, separate conversation, preserving the original.
Each user’s settings and memory remain private, even within a group.
ChatGPT Joins the Conversation—But Only When Asked
ChatGPT is present in every group chat but won’t interrupt the conversation unless invited:
- Users can tag @ChatGPT to ask it to respond, summarize, compare options, or provide suggestions.
- The AI can also react to messages with emojis and reference profile photos to keep the tone conversational.
This design reflects OpenAI’s goal to make AI feel like a helpful team member, not an intrusive voice.
A Move Toward Social AI
OpenAI views this release as the start of ChatGPT’s evolution into a collaborative platform, blending productivity with social functionality.
- “We see ChatGPT playing a more active role in group conversations,” the company wrote, envisioning AI as a co-planner, co-creator, and decision-support tool.
- It follows other recent moves into social and collaborative tools, including:
- 🚀 The Sora app (launched in September), which lets users create and share AI-generated videos on a social feed.
- 🧠 The GPT-5.1 release, which added Instant and Thinking response modes for smoother back-and-forth.
What You Can Do in Group Chat
Use cases for group chats are broad and flexible—ideal for:
- ✈️ Trip planning across different time zones
- 🧾 Co-writing blog posts, essays, or documents
- 🤔 Settling debates with neutral, cited answers
- 🔍 Collaborative research across multiple sources
- 🧠 Brainstorming sessions enhanced by AI summaries
By blending human perspectives with AI-generated insights, ChatGPT becomes a facilitator for group thinking.
What’s Next for ChatGPT?
With this global launch, OpenAI takes another step toward turning ChatGPT into a platform, not just a tool.
- Group chat is just the beginning. Future updates could include task assignment, file sharing, or collaborative agents that assist across different roles.
- The company says its vision is to make ChatGPT a space where people plan, create, and take action together—with the AI acting as an adaptive, intelligent collaborator.
ChatGPT now supports global group chats for all users, allowing up to 20 people to collaborate in shared conversations with the AI. Users can tag ChatGPT to contribute, while keeping personal settings private. The move marks a major step toward making ChatGPT a social, collaborative platform.
